What is Liver Transplant Procedure?

Liver Transplant: The heaviest and largest internal organ of the human body, the liver is responsible for performing complex functions such as turning nutrients into energy, producing a good amount of body protein, absorbing vitamins like A, D, E & K, and helping in quick fat digestion. When the liver fails to function optimally, severe symptoms and complications like yellowing of sclera and skin, abdominal swelling, vomiting, and disorientation, arise, which may require a liver transplant surgery. Liver Transplant surgery is the surgery wherein the dysfunctional liver of the patient is replaced with a part of healthy liver of another person or cadaver. Only a part of the donor's liver is required because liver has unique ability to regrow on its own.

What are Types of Liver Transplant Procedures?

All the process of liver transplantation requires that the donor does/did not have cancer or any other illness that could be transmitted to the recipient’s body during or after transplantation. Following are the three types of liver transplantation procedures:

Orthotopic treatment

In this procedure, the complete liver of a deceased donor, who was declared brain dead and died recently, is transplanted in the recipient’s body. It is obvious that the deceased donor must have donated his or her organs for donation before death.

Split type liver transplant

This procedure simultaneously benefits two patients who require liver transplantation. The healthy liver is taken from a deceased donor’s body and is split into two halves, left and right lobes. The larger lobe or the right lobe is transplanted in an adult’s body, while the left lobe is transplanted into a child’s body. Over the time, the transplanted liver grows back to its normal size through regeneration.

Living donor transplant

This type of liver transplant involves retrieving a part of healthy liver from a living person’s body and then transplanting it into the recipient’s body. Usually, the right lobe is better suited for adults, while the left lobe is apt for children. The donor’s remaining liver keeps functioning normally after the surgery and regenerates to its original size in about 45 days.

Liver Transplant in India

Organ transplantation in India has been rapidly gaining favouritism amongst medical tourists. Especially, when it comes to liver transplantation, India is renowned as a hub for some of the best doctors and surgeons in the world. With the assurance of delivering the finest clinical outcomes, the country boasts of its several globally accredited medical centres and hospitals that assure successful liver transplant surgery in India, all thanks to their adequate infrastructure, well-specialized staff, driven innovation, highly experienced surgeons, and other clinical facilities.

Another major reason that drives thousands of overseas patients to India every year is the cost factor. Compared to several developed countries including the United States and the United Kingdom, the total cost of Liver transplant in India is very less. Every year, the number of patients coming to India from abroad for a liver transplant is increasing. Delhi is one of the most sought-after cities in the country that has full-fledged liver transplantation hospitals.

At Medmonks, we work closely with some of the best liver transplant hospitals in India and will be more than happy to arrange an online consultation with one of the leading transplant surgeons even before you fly to India. The dedicated team at Medmonks assists the patients seeking quality liver transplant procedures in making the best treatment choices at economical liver transplant cost packages that can be customized as per the individual needs of the patients.

What is the Cost of Liver Transplant in India?

For patients from abroad seeking the best liver transplant package in the country, it is a relief that its cost is much less than what it is in the western countries. Even after adding up all other related costs such as that of medications, doctor’s fees, and hospital charges, the liver transplant price in India remains significantly lower than the cost of liver transplant in the US and the UK. Here’s a brief overview of country wise liver transplant cost compared to India:

Although the average cost of liver transplant in India varies on which hospital and chief transplant surgeon you choose, it is more or less very affordable when compared to numerous first-world countries. This cost generally includes the following major expenses:

Anaesthesia for surgery

Laboratory tests

Professional fee of the doctor

Hospital expenses including the fee of the supporting staff

Expenses incurred during recovery time

Costs of supportive medicines and surgical consumables

Rehabilitation costs and physical therapy costs

In other countries, all these exclusive costs accumulate to make the total liver transplant cost much more expensive. However, in India, medical tourists save big on their budgets while getting world-class treatments from highly experienced and skilled doctors and surgeons.

Things to remember when opting for liver transplant procedure in India

The patient cannot opt for a donor from India. Instead, he or she has to get a related donor from his or her own country.

If the donor is one of patient’s close relatives, the approval process for transplantation becomes faster and several medical complications can be meticulously avoided.

The patient and donor must have the same blood group.

In case the blood group of all possible donors is a mismatch, the patient may bring along a prospective donor for swap transplant, wherein the donor of another mismatched case but with same blood group as yours becomes your donor and your prospective donor becomes the actual donor for that patient.

Best Liver Transplant Hospitals in India

If you are planning to commute to India for the treatment, prefer to opt for the metro cities like Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Chennai, and Kolkata, as they are home to some of the best liver transplant hospitals. Also, in these cities, finding the best liver specialists in India, who can conduct the procedure with maximum dexterity, becomes easier. New Delhi, being the capital city of the country, is very popular for successful organ transplantations, especially liver transplantation. It is noteworthy that Delhi houses some of the most reputed transplant hospitals in India, which account for enhancing the patients’ quality of life with highest successful liver transplant rates. Although the cost of the treatment and inclusions in the total fee may differ from city to city, quality of surgery can be blindly trusted as most of liver surgeons in India have reliable degrees and practice, besides decades of experience and niftiness in the field of liver transplantation.

What is the recovery time after liver transplant?

A patient is usually kept in the ICU for two days after a liver transplant. After this stay in the intensive care unit, the patient is required to stay in the hospital’s regular part for about eight to ten days before leaving for home. Although the patient may not feel absolutely healthy for a few months after the surgery, he or she soon returns to their normal state of good health.

How long will a transplanted liver last?

It is noteworthy that the life and success rate of liver transplant in India is very high. Liver transplant has proven to have brilliant outcomes and recipients can live normally up to thirty years after the surgery. Also, liver transplant survival rate is pretty assuring for the patients, who have been prescribed the surgery.

Will I be able to perform physical activity post the surgery?

After liver transplantation, patients are usually encouraged to return to work after a recovery time of around three months. Even in cases of some complications, the patient is not suggested to rest for more than six months. The patient can also resume sexual activity early after release from the hospital. In many cases, patients who experienced impotence or lack of desire before the transplant, slowly begin to experience normal libido levels after the surgery.

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MedMonks is a leading medical travel company in India that help patients from abroad seek quality and affordable medical treatment in India. The company is managed by a highly experienced team of doctors and healthcare professionals who collectively hold more than 100 years of experience in the healthcare sector.